


Come and Get Your Love

by rsadelle



Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe - Career, Alternate Universe - No Band, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-12
Updated: 2018-12-12
Packaged: 2019-09-05 06:51:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16805596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rsadelle/pseuds/rsadelle
Summary: Five times Louis and Arlo went to Nick and Lizzie's house, or vice versa, plus one time it was the same house.





	Come and Get Your Love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [supersonicghost](https://archiveofourown.org/users/supersonicghost/gifts).



> I hope you enjoy this, supersonicghost! Thank you so much for your prompt. Thank you, too, for naming the kids, because then I could just have fun with it without worrying about whether or not I picked the right names for them, and I had so much fun writing this. :)
> 
> Thank you to M for beta reading services. Any remaining errors are my own. Thank you to the mods for running this very fun exchange.

**1\. Lizzie's Birthday**

The parent on Nick's doorstep is saying, "I'm sure she will," to his kid as Nick opens the door, so all he sees at first is the side of his head and the curve of a cheek that's just like his son's.

Then the parent turns to look at Nick. Nick's first thought is that the parent is incredibly fit. His second thought is that he hopes the parent is single and interested in men. His third thought is that he knows this man.

He can see the parent realize it at the same time he does. It's that particular kind of _oh shit_ moment that comes when you run into an old hookup in a completely different context and have to decide how to play it.

They're saved by the kid, who asks, "Are you Lizzie's dad?"

Nick crouches down to his level. "I am. I'm Grimmy." He holds out his hand, because sometimes kids like to shake hands and feel very grown-up.

The boy shakes his hand and smiles just like his dad. "Hi Grimmy! I'm Arlo."

Oh, God. The kid isn't just one of his daughter's classmates. He's the best friend she hasn't stopped talking about.

"Arlo!" Lizzie shouts from behind him. Nick stands, and Lizzie comes to the door and takes Arlo's hand to pull him into the party.

"Grimmy?" The parent asked.

"Short for Grimshaw," Nick says. "And that makes you Louis Tomlinson."

Louis gives him a rueful look. "Yeah. Never really exchanged last names before, did we?"

They exchanged a lot of things that Nick is better off not thinking about at his daughter's birthday party, but last names was never one of them.

"No." Nick stands there looking at Louis for another moment before he recovers. "Shit. I didn't mean to leave you on the doorstep. Come in. If you're staying." He makes the last a bit of a question; most of the parents are staying, but Louis might not want to now that he knows just whose flat this is.

Louis says, "Yeah, cheers," and steps into Nick's flat.

Nick's social circle includes plenty of exes and former hookups, but usually they're people Nick kept in touch with to begin with, not someone he hasn't seen in the, God, it must be at least seven years now since the last time they hooked up.

"Was that a tiara Lizzie was wearing?"

Conversations about his daughter are always enough to distract Nick from the awkwardness of any moment, so he grins and says, "It is. A proper one, even. An Alice band with glittery things standing up on it just wouldn't do."

"They can be very stubborn at this age," Louis says.

Nick laughs. "And very definite about their clothing." He takes Louis through to the kitchen where most of the adults have gathered. It has a view of the lounge and the garden, where the kids are, and an extensive selection of drinks.

Nick's looking for it, so he sees Aimee's double-take and Henry's raised eyebrows.

"This is Arlo's dad," he announces to the room, and all the parents of Lizzie's other school friends greet him with the names of their own children.

When Louis gets out of that tangle, he nods to Henry and Aimee.

"Oh, none of that." Henry pulls Louis into a loose hug. "We saw you enough to know you."

Louis blushes, lightly but there, and takes both Henry and Aimee's proffered hugs. "Been a while."

"Feels like forever," Aimee says. "So your kid is Lizzie's new best friend." She nods at the kids, and Nick and Louis both turn to look where Lizzie and Arlo have their heads bent together while Sunday's organizing a game with three of the other kids.

"Suppose so," Louis says. "Every time I ask him about school, all he talks about is whatever he got up to with Lizzie." He looks soft, and there's a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. It is bloody unfair that this is Nick's daughter's birthday party and not a time and place where he can drag Louis off to a room with a door and get that mouth on his cock.

Henry gives Nick a look that says he knows exactly what he's thinking and judging him for it. Well, Henry was never the one on the receiving end of those blowjobs; if he had been, he'd know exactly why there's no reason to judge Nick for his fond memories.

Harry comes in from the garden, and Nick can practically see Louis's gaze get caught on Harry's hands full of rings as he sweeps his hair back with the practiced unconcern of people who are wholly confident in their own attractiveness.

Nick's been there, but that doesn't stop him from being jealous, just a bit, at least until Louis turns to him with raised eyebrows and asks, "Harry Styles is at your daughter's birthday party?"

This is a conversation Nick is used to, and it's easy to toss off a breezy, "Oh, it's much worse than that. Harry Styles is my daughter's godfather."

"And I'm brilliant at it," Harry says. He holds out a hand to Louis. "Hi, I'm Harry."

"Louis." Louis shakes his hand. "Arlo's dad."

"The famous Arlo," Harry drawls. "I've heard all about him from Lizzie. You look familiar. Have we met before?"

It's too bad Nick has a flat full of kids and can't drown himself in wine watching Harry flirt with Louis.

"Yeah, yeah. Think we ended up at one of the same Brits afterparties last year."

Even Harry's embarrassed face is attractive. "I'm afraid I don't remember much of that night. There were a couple of afterparties. I do remember the hangover. It was awful."

Louis flashes him a grin, and it's so unfair that it's directed at someone other than Nick. "Lightweight."

Harry drawls out an offended, "Heeeeey," smiling all the while.

Nick is saved from having to watch more of this by his wonderful, amazing, best thing that's ever happened to him daughter. She threads her way through the adults, Arlo in tow, and fetches up next to Harry.

"Harry, come play!"

Harry takes her hand and goes with them.

It would be the perfect opportunity for Nick to recapture Louis's attention for himself, except that the doorbell goes and he has to play host for a bit. Then, of course, he has to join Harry in organizing the kids into games, and it's all headlong party from there on until people start leaving. Not that he hasn't seen Louis, of course, because he keeps looking for him and finding him in what seems to be easy conversation with any number of the adults at the party. But he hasn't had another chance to really talk to him until Harry, Louis, and Arlo are the last people there.

Lizzie and Arlo are perfectly content with whatever game they're playing, which means Nick can join Louis and Harry where they're having an easy, animated conversation in the kitchen.

Harry looks at him and grins. "Need a glass of wine after that."

"An entire bottle," Nick says, draping himself half over the counter. "And a week's worth of sleep. How are small children so much more exhausting when there are more than two of them?"

Louis has just the hint of a smile on his face.

Harry laughs. "You love it." He turns to Louis. "Grimmy would have a house full of people at all times if he could convince them to be here."

Louis eyes Nick up and down in a way that, in a former time, would have boded well for Nick's night. "I can believe that. He looks well-satisfied with himself."

"You would know," Nick shoots back before he can remember that Harry doesn't know about that.

Louis rakes his eyes over Nick in another look that is way too heated for Nick's daughter's birthday party, even if said daughter is otherwise occupied. "Oh, I know." Then he seems to remember where he is and looks over to the kids. "We should get out of your hair if I can tear Arlo away."

Nick makes the requisite protests, but the party is officially over and Lizzie probably needs a nap after the excitement of the day.

Louis crouches down next to Lizzie and Arlo. "Lad, it's time to go home."

Arlo looks at him with a stubborn pout that Nick has seen on Louis's face. "No."

"Yeah, yeah," Louis says. "The party's over. Say goodbye to Lizzie."

Arlo's next, "No," is much more forceful, and comes with the beginnings of tears and a tone that Nick recognizes as one that presages a meltdown.

Nick looks to Lizzie, who's watching Louis and Arlo carefully, in case he needs to intervene with her.

Louis pulls a protesting Arlo into his arms. "I know, lad. You want to stay with Lizzie."

Arlo nods. "Yeah."

Louis hugs him, then lets him go and looks him right in the eye. "I know you do, lad. It's still time to go, so say goodbye to Lizzie, and you'll see her again soon."

Arlo sniffles. "Tomorrow?"

The smile Louis gives him makes Nick's heart hurt with how sweet and loving it is.

Louis brushes Arlo's hair back. "Tomorrow we're having brunch with Uncle Liam, and then you're going to your mum's. You'll see Lizzie at school the day after that."

Arlo sniffles again and nods. "Okay."

Louis squeezes his shoulder. "Good lad."

Arlo and Lizzie saying goodbye takes just as long as it ever takes Nick to say goodbye to anyone. They have to hug three times and when Lizzie says, "You're my best friend," Arlo grins brightly, just like Louis does, and says, "You're mine!"

When they're as done as they're going to get, Louis picks Arlo up. Once he does, Nick can see that Louis's judged it right, because Arlo lays his head on Louis's shoulder and looks about two minutes from passing out.

Nick hands him a piece of cake, which he expertly juggles along with his kid, and says, "Thank you for coming."

"As if we would miss it."

The curve of Louis's cheek with his smile makes Nick want to kiss him, but he restrains himself to an only slightly awkward one-armed hug.

Louis hugs Harry too, and says, "Text me when you're free."

Harry holds up his phone in a salute and says, "I will."

Nick and Lizzie walk Louis and Arlo to the door. As soon as it's closed behind them, Nick crouches down to Lizzie's level and says, "How was your birthday party?"

The smile that spreads across Lizzie's face makes everything about the day worth it. "It was perfect, Daddy." She flings her arms around him. "It was the best birthday ever."

Nick scoops her up as he stands and leaves kisses all over her face. "The best ever?"

She nods vigorously, making her curls go everywhere. "The very, very bestest ever."

Nick carries her to the sofa and sits with her on his lap, telling him everything she loved about it, until her voice starts to slow and she falls asleep. Nick lowers her gently onto the sofa and goes into the kitchen where Harry is doing the washing up.

Harry turns away from the sink with a smirk already on his face. "Louis," he says.

Nick throws a dish towel at him. "Don't think I didn't notice you flirting with him."

"No, no," Harry says. "We're not talking about me, and I was flirting with him just for fun. You know him."

Nick gives in to the inevitability of the conversation. Also, he wants to talk to someone about it, and Harry's as good as any of the rest of his friends. "I pulled him a few times. Or he pulled me."

Harry's eyebrows go way up.

"Ages ago," Nick clarifies. "Way before Lizzie. In my wild days."

Harry snorts. "You say that like your wild days ever really ended."

While it is true that Nick has been known to leave Lizzie with one of the myriad adults who love her and go out, things have changed, and Harry knows it.

"You clearly like each other," Harry says. "What happened?"

Nick shrugs. "Nothing, really. We never exchanged numbers, and I stopped seeing him around, and that was that."

Harry thinks about that for a moment. "And now his son is your daughter's best friend."

"Yes," Nick says with a sigh. "Now his son is my daughter's best friend."

**2\. Playdate**

The sound of Louis's voice comes through the door before there's a clunk of a deadbolt being unlocked and then the door opens and there's Louis and Arlo framed in the doorway.

"Lizzie!"

"Arlo!"

The kids fling themselves at each other as if it's been much longer than a day since they last saw each other. It's just as adorable as it is ridiculous.

Louis flashes a smile at Nick before he crouches down. "Hi, Lizzie."

Lizzie grins at him. "You're Arlo's dad."

"I am." Louis holds out a hand and she solemnly shakes it. "My name's Louis."

Nick is watching for it, so he sees Lizzie's eyes get wide. "Like the king!"

Louis quirks his eyebrows and tilts his head to look up at Nick.

"We went to Versailles last weekend," Nick explains.

Louis's eyebrows go up even more. "Yeah, yeah," he says to Lizzie. "Like the king. How about you call me Tommo?"

"Like how people call daddy Grimmy!"

The things Nick feels at the way Louis smiles at Lizzie are perhaps inappropriate for the situation.

"Exactly like that."

Arlo cuts in, wrapping one arm around Louis's leg and taking Lizzie's hand with the others. "Can we play outside?"

Louis stands up and lets them all into the house. "Sure thing, lad." They run off before Louis can finish closing the door. "Alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Nick says. If it were literally anyone else, he would hug them, but he's not sure where he and Louis stand on that sort of thing. "You?"

"Good, yeah." Louis doesn't seem to know either. He hesitates for a moment before gesturing Nick farther into the house. "Tea?"

"Yes, please," Nick says, thankful for the usefulness of the ritual as well as the offer of tea.

They can see the garden from the kitchen. Arlo and Lizzie have a football and are running around chasing it. Arlo isn't bad; Lizzie seems to have inherited Nick's lack of athletic ability.

Louis makes tea, and they sit across from each other at the dining table that also gives them a good view of the garden.

"So this is awkward," Nick says brightly.

Louis laughs, a loud bark of a thing. "Horribly awkward."

Nick rubs the side of his mug with a thumb. "I did wonder whatever happened to you." It's not a lie; he'd liked Louis, _loved_ the sex. He missed him when he stopped coming out to the places Nick used to see him.

Louis sips his tea. "I was going through a pretty wild stage when I knew you."

Their eyes meet, and Nick expects that Louis is also remembering just how wild Nick knows that stage was.

Louis's mouth tightens into a smile that just barely lifts the corners of his lips. "It wasn't really a dramatic end. I fell in love with Sara. We got married and had Arlo." Louis shrugs, a quick twitch of his shoulders. "And now we're divorced and share custody which is why she texted you about Lizzie's party and I'm the one who showed up." He lifts his mug. "Your turn. How did you go from pulling boys in clubs to being a doting father?"

"Similar story," Nick says. "Met a boy, fell in love, moved in together. Found a surrogate. He decided he didn't want to be a father. Broke up." It's been years and years, and it still stings.

"Shit," Louis says.

"Complete shit," Nick agrees. "But the surrogate was willing to carry a baby for me without a partner, and here I am."

"Here you are," Louis says. He looks at Nick from under the fringe of his hair. It still has the power to make Nick want to drag him into a room with a door. It doesn't even have to lock. He can push Louis up against it to keep it closed like they used to do in clubs. "Single?"

"Yeah." And if Louis is going to flirt with him, Nick can flirt right back. "You?"

"Very." Then the intensity of the moment is gone and Louis's smiling a sunny smile at him. It doesn't do anything to reduce Nick's desire to snog him. "Hard to date when you have a full-time job and a four-year-old."

"Imagine how hard it is when you're the five-year-old's only parent."

Louis laughs and toasts him with his mug. "Alright. You definitely have it worse."

Before Nick can come up with a proper response to that, there's a cry from the garden that has both of them out of their chairs in an instant.

Lizzie's sitting on the ground holding her knee with tears streaking her face. Arlo's standing next to her also starting to cry.

Nick has had five years to get used to his daughter's bumps and bruises, and he's still rubbish at dealing with them.

Louis takes in the situation at a glance and crouches down next to Lizzie. "Hey, darling. What happened?"

Lizzie wails out, "It hurts!"

Louis puts his hand on the one she has clutched over her knee. "Can I see?"

Lizzie lets him move her hand. Intellectually, Nick knows it's just a scrape and she'll be fine. Emotionally, he can't stand to see his daughter in pain, and he knows, from long experience, that if someone else is taking charge of the situation, he's liable to fall to pieces.

"Lizzie got hurt," Arlo fusses.

"I think that needs a plaster," Louis says. "Do you want me to carry you?"

Lizzie nods and holds her arms up to him.

That leaves Arlo to Nick. He puts his arm around Arlo's shoulders. "Lizzie did get hurt, but your dad is going to make it all better. Should we go with them?"

Arlo nods and holds his arms up. Nick will never not be amazed by how trusting children are. He lifts Arlo up and they go into the house in Louis and Lizzie's wake.

Louis has Lizzie sitting on the lid of the toilet in the downstairs loo and he's talking calmly to her while he washes off her knee. It looks much less worrying once the grass and blood is off of it. It's also much less worrying once Lizzie's settled down from outright sobs to a few tears trailing down her cheeks.

"Lizzie's going to be alright," Nick says, as much for his own benefit as for Arlo. He grabs a tissue to wipe the tears from Arlo's eyes, and then reaches over to do the same for Lizzie.

"Of course she is." Louis runs a casual, parental hand over Lizzie's hair. "All she needs now is a plaster." He opens a cabinet and pulls out a box of plasters. He pulls a couple of them out. "Do you want Spider-Man or Peppa Pig?"

Lizzie's voice is a little wobbly but clear when she says, "Spider-Man, please."

"Spider-Man it is." Louis opens the plaster and carefully puts it over the scrape on her knee, then bends down and kisses it. "Better?"

Lizzie nods. "Yeah." She touches the plaster. "Arlo needs one too."

Louis's lips turn up in a smile. "He does, does he?"

"Yes," Lizzie says firmly.

Nick adjusts his weight to compensate for the shift when Arlo holds out his perfectly unharmed knee. Louis puts a plaster on him and presses a kiss over it.

"There we go. Everyone's alright now." Louis puts the box of plasters away. "Think it's time for a snack. What do you say?"

Both Arlo and Lizzie brighten up and give enthusiastic agreements.

Louis picks up Lizzie, so Nick holds Arlo until they get to the table where he and Louis set the kids down into chairs.

"Are you still hurt?" Arlo asks.

Lizzie considers the question before answering it. "It hurts a little bit, but not a lot."

Nick follows Louis into the kitchen where he refills the kettle and switches it on while Louis makes a snack for Lizzie and Arlo. They end up with real tea for Nick and Louis, milky tea for Lizzie and Arlo, and a plate full of slices of both apple and sharp cheddar.

The kids seem perfectly happy, all thoughts of Lizzie's scraped knee forgotten, by the time they finish their snack.

Nick and Louis pick at the remains of the apples and cheese while Arlo and Lizzie run off to play, no worse for the wear for the minor injuries.

"You're good at that," Nick says. "Staying calm and keeping them calm. I tend to go to pieces when Lizzie's hurt."

"Loads of practice," Louis says. "I've got five sisters and a brother, all younger."

"Oh, God," Nick says.

Louis laughs. "Yeah, it was a lot." He shrugs a little. "But I got good at it."

"You did," Nick agrees. Then he leans forward. "Last time I knew you, you were in uni and now you're going to the same Brits afterparties as Harry. How'd that happen?"

"Got lucky, mostly. I had a mate from uni who did music and just needed someone to help get him noticed. I'm in A&R at Syco now."

Nick's absolutely sure that takes more than just luck, and that Louis's downplaying it a bit.

"What about you?" Louis asks. "What are you doing when you're not taking care of Lizzie?"

"Fashion, darling," Nick drawls. He strikes a pose, waits for Louis's judgemental eyebrows, and laughs. "I'm a fashion designer. Have my own company and everything."

"Really?" Louis lights up and leans forward. "I'm actually really interested in fashion."

Nick gets his own turn at judgemental eyebrows. Louis's wearing track pants and a plain white t-shirt. Not that he doesn't look good, because Nick doesn't think anything could make him look bad, but it doesn't exactly scream fashion.

"Oh, fuck off," Louis says with a laugh.

Nick can't help but laugh with him, and they laugh for a minute until it fades out and they're just looking at each other smiling.

Then Louis tilts his head to the side. "Does it seem too quiet?"

Now that he mentions it, it does.

They get up together and go in search of the kids. They find them laid out on the floor of the lounge, Arlo on his stomach and Lizzie on her back, fast asleep. There's a toy car in one of Arlo's hands and a stuffed elephant under one of Lizzie's arms.

"Oh my God," Nick says, quiet so he won't wake them. He takes out his phone and takes a couple of pictures.

Next to him, Louis takes out his own phone and takes one.

"Can I Instagram this?" Nick asks.

"Not his face," Louis says. "We're trying to keep that off social media."

Nick crouches down to get just the right picture, Lizzie in the foreground, glimpse of Arlo behind her. It's too good and too important for a story. He puts it on his main Instagram.

"Come on." Louis takes his arm and pulls him back to the table. "Don't wake them up yet. They can probably use the sleep."

He makes more tea, and they sit at the table talking until Arlo and Lizzie wake up, when Louis invites Nick and Lizzie to stay for tea.

"Please?" Lizzie asks. "Please, Daddy, please can we stay?"

Nick rests his hand on the top of her head. "Calm down, hon. We're staying."

Louis orders pizza, which Nick has no objection to and delights the kids. They both end up with sauce all over their faces and hands. Nick and Louis exchange smiles when they do their best to clean up their respective kids. It's a joy, really, to get to be a father, and Nick can see that Louis feels it just as much as he does.

They leave after tea, Lizzie and Arlo both pouting about it and hugging for so long Nick wonders if they're going to have to physically pry them apart.

Louis smiles down at them and goes in for a hug with Nick, which is a wholly welcome surprise. He doesn't smell exactly the same - his cologne is different, and probably the shampoo as well - but it's familiar enough to remind Nick of what he used to be doing with Louis in his arms.

"We'll have to do this again."

Nick looks at the kids. "I don't think we're getting out of it even if we wanted to."

Louis laughs, and that's what Nick thinks about later, after Lizzie's asleep for the night, while he lies in bed wanks himself to a highly satisfying orgasm.

**Interlude: Going Out Out**

Gillian spots Louis before Nick does. "Your crush is here."

"Stop," Nick says before he turns to look. Then he almost swallows his tongue. Because Louis always looks amazing, but tonight he's turned it up to eleven. He's wearing black skinny jeans that hug his legs and bum with a checked button down that's loose but shows off the tattoos on his lower arms. His hair swoops over his forehead in a way that makes Nick want to sweep it back just to watch it fall back into place. "Oh my God."

Henry turns to look, too, and turns back with raised eyebrows. "He looks good."

"I know," Nick groans. "This is going to be a disaster."

Everyone else laughs, and Nick gives in to the inevitable and waves when the laughter makes Louis turn in their direction.

"Just tell him you want him to suck your dick," Gillian says. "It's not like you've never done it before."

Nick can feel himself turning bright red. He shushes Gillian quickly so Louis won't hear her, and he's as normal as he can be in the presence of someone he likes by the time Louis reaches them.

Louis works his way around the group, greeting everyone with hugs, until he gets to Nick.

"Hiya," Nick says. "Y'alright?

Louis's face goes all smiley. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good." He pairs the hug he gives Nick with a brush of his lips over Nick's cheek.

Nick's cheeks heat up again, and he may not be able to stop smiling.

He's still grinning an hour later when he puts his empty cup down on the table and suggests leaving the pub for a club.

They're within a few blocks of one of Nick's favorite clubs, a place with good DJs, good drinks, and plenty of fit men to look at. It takes a few minutes for everyone to gather up their coats and finish their drinks, and then they spill out onto the street in a cheerful, laughing crowd.

Louis walks next to Nick, so close that their shoulders and elbows and the backs of their hands brush against each other.

When they get to the club, Nick gets drinks for both of them because it means he can choose gin and tonic and watch Louis's cheeks hollow when he sucks on the straw. From the way Louis's eyes sparkle at him above his glass, he knows exactly why Nick picked what he did.

They stay on the edge of the dance floor, all of them shouting to be heard over the music in between bouts of singing along.

Nick's almost done with his drink when Louis catches his eye. He looks straight at Nick while he puts the straw in his mouth and sucks hard, finishing his drink.

The lighting in the club means no one can see Nick turning red. He takes Louis's glass from him, stacks his on top of it, and hands them both off to Henry to deal with.

There's a burst of laughter behind them when Nick takes Louis's hand and pulls him onto the dance floor proper.

Louis turns into him when they get into the mass of people dancing. Nick's body remembers exactly what to do with that, like it hasn't been a decade since he last had his arms around Louis holding him close and grinding against him.

Louis moves with him like he remembers too.

It's hot in the club, more so when they're dancing and pressed close. There's a sheen of sweat on Louis's neck when Nick puts his lips there. Louis presses toward Nick, like he's trying to get closer, and tips his head to bare more of his neck. Nick kisses all the way up to his jaw, then pulls back enough to look at Louis's face.

Louis sucks in his cheeks, or maybe it's just the way they look in this light, and looks at Nick from under his eyelashes. Nick remembers that too.

"Let's get out of here."

God, Nick didn't expect it to be that much like it used to be. He should hesitate because if anything goes bad with Louis, it'll be hard for Lizzie. He doesn't, because he wants Louis too much.

Louis leads them out of the club. Nick texts the group chat with his free hand to let everyone else know they're leaving. They get a cab out front, and Nick gives the cabbie his address.

A decade ago they would have been unable to keep their hands off of each other in the car. Now, Nick's keenly aware of the fact that some of the tabloids care about him, that they both have children, that they have to pretend to be responsible.

He keeps his hands to himself until they're in his flat, when Louis is reaching for him with the same urgency that he's reaching for Louis.

"Upstairs," Nick says when he's gotten enough of a taste of Louis to last him a few minutes. "I want you in my bed."

Louis breathes hotly against Nick's chin, then pulls away, turns around, and bounds up the stairs. His bum when he does that is as gorgeous as ever.

Louis's taking the stairs two at a time, but Nick's legs are longer. He catches up with Louis on the landing. He wraps his arms around Louis from behind, grinning.

Louis laughs, leans into Nick, then pulls against his arms. "Which one's yours?"

Nick walks Louis into his bedroom. Where the rest of the flat is brighter, more filled with things, his bedroom is an oasis of white walls and white sheets, a blank canvas for him to sleep in. For him to look at Louis in.

"God, I want you," Nick blurts out. "Do you remember?"

Louis turns around, puts his hands on either side of Nick's face. "I remember it all." He kisses Nick, a firm, sure press of their mouths together. "I really, really want you to fuck me."

"God, yes." Nick runs his hands down Louis's back to his bum and squeezes. "Yes, that."

Louis grins at him, bright and sunny as Nick has ever seen him. "Brilliant." He pushes against Nick's arms strongly enough to make Nick let go of him. He points at Nick. "Take your shoes off. There's no way to make that part sexy."

Nick laughs and lets Louis take a few steps away so they can each take off their own shoes. Nick pulls off his socks while he's at it. Louis's done the same; he always was more comfortable barefoot.

Nick catches Louis around the waist again. "Do I get to undress you, or are you going to strip for me?"

Louis's eyelashes sweep down and back up again. "Undress me."

Nick kisses him, tilting his chin up with one hand and licking deep into Louis's mouth when he opens up for him.

He remembers this, too, the way it feels to unbutton Louis's shirt when they're so close together there's only just enough space for Nick's hands between them, the way it keeps his hands against Louis's chest as he works his way down, the way he can feel Louis's chest lift into his hands with every breath.

There are more tattoos when he pushes Louis's shirt off. Nick doesn't step back to look at them. He unbuttons Louis's jeans and undoes the zip where Louis's cock is pushing against it. Louis's wearing tight pants under them, straining over the bulge of his cock.

Nick has to get down on his knees to pull Louis's jeans off.

Louis's hands brush over his hair. "This brings back some good memories."

Nick grins up at him. "Changing your mind?"

Louis shakes his head. "God, no. Get up here and get your kit off so I can look at you while you fuck me."

It's an irresistible command. Nick pulls Louis's pants off after his jeans, sparing only a moment to reacquaint himself with the view of Louis's cock right in front of him before he stands and steps back to get out of his clothes. He does it fast.

"Yeah, yeah," Louis says looking at him. "I think you're even fitter than the last time we did this, and you were plenty fit then." He turns, giving Nick a truly magnificent view of his bum, and goes to the bed, where he pushes the duvet out of the way and lies down on his back.

Nick follows him and bends over him to kiss him before he gets the lube, condoms, and baby wipes he uses to clean up these days out of his nightstand.

He catches Louis looking at the box of baby wipes, and they exchange the rueful, understanding look of parents who've learned just how useful they are to clean up all kinds of messes.

Nick pats Louis's hip. "Turn over."

Louis shakes his head. "I want to look at you."

Nick pushes at Louis's hip. "In a minute. I want to look at your bum while I open you up."

Louis presses his lips together in the sort of understated pleased look Nick remembers and turns over. He pulls his knees in, pushes his bum up. He keeps his shoulders down and sways his back so there's a perfect curve from his thighs over his bum and down the small of his back.

"My God," Nick says. "I think I've died and gone to heaven."

Louis laughs, a burst of sound that seems unplanned.

Nick grins. He always did like it when he succeeded in making Louis laugh. He pours lube onto his fingers and warms it up a bit. He rubs his fingers over Louis's hole, starting to get it wet, then pushes one of them into him. It doesn't take long until Louis is asking for a second one.

"I forgot how good that feels," Louis says.

When Nick looks up from his fingers disappearing into that amazing arse, Louis has his head turned to one side, sweat beading on his forehead, eyes closed, blissful look on his face. "Been a while?"

"Been only me own fingers for too long."

That's an image almost as good as the one right in front of Nick. He crooks his fingers inside Louis.

"Fuck," Louis says, sharp on the consonants. "Fuck, yeah. Yeah. Fuck me, come on. Been ages since I got fucked."

Nick takes his fingers out. Louis rolls onto his back while Nick uses a baby wipe to get enough lube off his fingers that he can tear open a condom.

Louis spreads his legs and brings his knees up, eyes wide open as he gives all his attention to Nick. It's a heady feeling, and so is the combination of his arse around Nick's cock and the way everything he's feeling shows on his face.

"Alright?" Nick asks when he's all the way in.

Louis's eyes fall shut and open again. "Yeah. Really, really good." He puts his arms around Nick and pulls him down so they can kiss.

Nick rocks his hips in tiny little thrusts while they snog for a few minutes. He remembers how good it was to snog Louis before, and he thinks it might be even better now, when they're settled adults sure about what they want in life, when they went out just to have fun, not because they were desperately chasing something they hadn't found yet.

Nick pulls back to get better leverage for a few deeper, longer thrusts that make Louis's eyelids flutter. "Yeah?"

Louis nods. "Yeah. Please."

Nick leans over Louis, laces his fingers through Louis's on either side of Louis's head. "This is so good."

Louis grins at him, a fleeting expression before the pure pleasure takes over his face again. "Told you so."

Nick huffs out a chuckle. "You did." He dips to kiss Louis again, then sets himself to shifting every few thrusts until he finds the angle that makes Louis moan. He keeps it up for a bit, watching the sweat on Louis's face, feeling the way he squeezes Nick's hands tight.

"Nick," Louis says. "Nick, please." The pleading is written all over his face too.

Nick lets go of one of Louis's hands and wraps it around his cock instead.

Louis holds tight to the hand Nick still has tangled with his, brings his other hand over to it so he's holding on to Nick's hand between both of his. "Yeah, yeah, please."

"Yeah," Nick echoes. "Yeah, come on." He wanks Louis out of sync with the way he's fucking him, hand and hips operating on their own. Louis's gorgeous like this, feels amazing under Nick, and it's so easy to that Nick almost can't believe it's been years and years since they last did this.

Louis's whole face shows it when he comes. He pushes his hips up into Nick's touch, squeezes Nick's hands, and comes all over his own stomach, ecstasy all over his face.

Nick's right behind him, no way he can last after that, definitely not with the way Louis's face eases out of ecstasy into a soft bliss that has him smiling up at Nick like he's utterly content.

"Fuck, you're brilliant." Louis keeps one of his hands in Nick's and uses the other to rub over Nick's chest. "Fit and brilliant. Can't remember the last time anyone fucked me that good."

That's it for Nick, and he might be saying something, maybe Louis's name, while he comes harder than he has in recent memory.

Nick is responsible enough to pull out carefully, deal with the condom, and offer baby wipes to Louis to clean himself up before he collapses onto the bed next to Louis.

"My God," he says.

Louis laughs, an exhausted chuckle. "Either I don't remember it being as good as it was, and I remember it being really good, or we're better at that now."

"Could be a bit of both." Nick pulls him in for a bit of a snog and a cuddle. "Are you staying?"

"Yeah." Louis slides his mouth across Nick's in a lazy kiss. "Won't leave 'til after you're up. Remember how you are about that."

Nick turns out the light and pulls the duvet up over them. "Still okay being the little spoon?"

Louis's already starting to sleepily slur his words when he says, "Yeah, darling, love to."

"Perfect," Nick says, and it really is.

**3\. Christmas (Observed)**

"Daddy, they're here!" Lizzie shrieks and runs for the door when the doorbell goes.

There's an answering shout from the other side of the door.

When Nick undoes the locks that are, for now, still over Lizzie's head and opens the door, he and Lizzie are greeted with the sight of Louis and Arlo, both bundled up for the cold. Arlo's bouncing on his toes, like he's just as excited and impatient for this as Lizzie is. Louis's less physical about it, but he's also grinning and there's a sparkle in his eyes.

Lizzie and Arlo fling themselves at each other for one of their crushing exuberant hugs, both of them shouting, "Happy Christmas!" at each other and at Nick and Louis.

Arlo drops his coat, scarf, and hat on the floor, toes out of his shoes, and runs off into the house with Lizzie, who's saying, "You have to see the tree! There's chocolate on it, and Daddy lets me eat it."

Louis laughs, and bends down to pick up Arlo's things. "Sorry about that."

"'S alright." Nick lives with a five-year-old; he understands.

Louis hangs Arlo's things on the coat rack. "Should we worry about them eating chocolates off the tree?"

Nick grins, because there are some parenting secrets he's learned well. "I only put a few of them on the tree at a time."

"Clever lad." Louis gets his coat and scarf hung up as well, cranes his head toward the lounge, and tugs Nick in by the neck of his jumper. "Alright?"

Nick's great now. He settles his hands on Louis's hips. "Yeah, I'm good. Happy Christmas."

Louis smiles that bright smile Nick loves putting on his face. "Happy Christmas."

Nick smiles right back at him. Their smiles meet in the middle when they kiss.

Louis glances up at the ceiling. "Look at that. Didn't even need any mistletoe."

Nick laughs, not so loud that it will attract Arlo and Lizzie's attention. "It'd be a right disappointment if I needed mistletoe to get to kiss you."

"Wouldn't want to disappoint you." Louis kisses him again, slow and perfect.

Nick could spend all day standing in the hall kissing him. Today is not the day for that, though, and Louis is the first one to step back and pick up the carry bag he set down when he was dealing with coats and scarves.

"Now where's this tree? It'd better be a proper nice one, you a designer and all."

"A designer with a five-year-old," Nick reminds him.

Louis laughs, and precedes him into the lounge where the tree is set up. It's tall, almost to the ceiling. Nick used to do more artful trees, but now he lets Lizzie make choices about them. This year that means it's strung with colored lights, three colors of tinsel, every glittery or sparkly ornament Nick would let Lizzie buy, and a small handful of chocolates hung low enough that Lizzie can get to them without climbing on anything.

"Dad," Arlo says, "there's chocolates on the tree!"

"I see that," Louis ruffles Arlo's hair. "Pretty good idea, innit?"

Arlo puts the rest of the chocolate in his hand into his mouth and nods vigorously.

"Tommo, do you want one?" Lizzie reaches for the tree. "I can get you one."

"Thank you, darling." Louis accepts the chocolate she hands him.

"Do I not get one?" Nick asks.

"Daddy, you're not a guest."

Louis flashes Nick a grin. "That's you told."

"Out of the mouths of babes." Nick gets himself a chocolate from the tree.

The timer on Nick's phone goes off, so he takes the wrappers from everyone's chocolates and goes to check on dinner.

Louis follows him into the kitchen and peers over his shoulder. "You went all out."

"More of a Sunday roast than a proper Christmas dinner," Nick says.

"Still looks good." Louis's hand sliding across Nick's waist feels like a tease.

Nick resets the timer for a few more minutes and turns around. "Unlike this." He plucks at the arm of Louis's Christmas jumper.

"I'll have you know my nan made this for me," Louis says.

Nick feels bad for a moment, before he sees the mischief in Louis's eyes. He swats at Louis's arm.

Louis laughs and rubs the arm of Nick's jumper. "I'm betting yours isn't lovingly handmade."

"Expensively storebought," Nick confirms.

"It's awful," Louis says cheerfully.

Louis offers to help, so Nick sets him to carrying things to the table, and pours him a glass of wine in thanks.

Lizzie and Arlo, with the sixth sense children have for food, come into the kitchen and get underfoot.

Louis sets his wine glass down with a wink at Nick, and holds his hands out to Lizzie and Arlo. "Let's wash our hands."

Nick has everything on the table by the time they get back. He pours juice for Lizzie and Arlo, and they all sit down together.

Lizzie sits up on her knees on her chair and waves the Christmas cracker at her place. "We have to do crackers first."

Nick and Louis exchange an understanding look and make sure they each get one end of Lizzie and Arlo's crackers. The four of them count to three together, and then they pull the crackers open.

There's an air of general chaos while they see what was in each of their crackers. Lizzie and Arlo can put their crowns on themselves, but they need Nick and Louis to read the jokes for them.

They're terrible jokes, but they send Lizzie and Arlo into hysterical laughter, which in turn makes Nick and Louis laugh and exchange smiles across the table as they set to serving dinner.

The moment Lizzie's decided she's eaten enough, she bounces in her chair and asks, "Daddy, can we open presents now?"

"We're not finished eating," Nick points out.

"Hurry up," Lizzie says.

"That's not how it works," Nick says. "We can't just eat faster."

Louis stuffs half a Yorkshire pudding in his mouth, puffing out his cheeks and making an effort to chew. It makes Lizzie and Arlo both giggle.

It's another one of those moments when Nick should not be thinking what he's thinking about how much Louis can fit in his mouth.

Lizzie and Arlo entertain themselves with the trinkets from the crackers until Nick and Louis finish eating.

"Presents now?" Lizzie asks when Nick stands up.

Nick leans over and kisses the top of her head. "We have to tidy up first."

Lizzie sighs dramatically, but she and Arlo carry their plates to the kitchen. Nick entrusts them with the empty serving dishes, and he and Louis gather the rest.

Nick takes the remainder of the bottle of wine into the lounge with them and refills both his and Louis's glasses. They sit on the sofa, close, but not as close as Nick would really prefer. Louis's Christmas jumper is the requisite level of hideous, but it's soft, and he's paired it with trackies, which makes him look so casual and cosy that Nick is legitimately having a hard time not cuddling up to him.

To keep himself from doing anything he shouldn't, Nick claps his hands and asks, "Who's going to open a present first?"

Arlo leans forward toward the small pile of gifts set under the tree. "Me!"

Lizzie scrambles to the gifts and pulls out a lumpy package with uneven edges and too much tape. "Open this one. It's from me."

Arlo tears the paper off it to reveal the Spider-Man coloring book with a matching box of crayons that has extra red and blue crayons Lizzie picked out for him. He holds it up and turns around. "Dad, look!"

Louis smiles at him. "I see that, lad."

Arlo beams at Lizzie. "I love it." He sets the coloring book aside and pulls another inexpertly wrapped package out of the stack. "This is for you."

Lizzie tears the paper, pushing it off the gift inside in pieces. She nearly shrieks when she gets through the paper. "Daddy, daddy, look." She brings it over to Nick. It's a sticker book with extra sets of stickers. "There are dinosaurs _and_ princesses."

Nick grins at her. "Two of your favorite things. Can you say thank you to Arlo?"

Lizzie keeps the book and stickers gripped tight in one small fist while she throws her arms around Arlo. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She pulls back and looks at their presents. "You can have some dinosaur stickers to go with Spider-Man."

"You can help me color."

Nick's heart might actually burst with how cute it is.

"Do you want to open your other presents?" Louis asks.

Both Lizzie and Arlo say an enthusiastic, "Yes!"

Arlo opens his other gift first. "Cool."

Nick nudges Louis. "Don't look so suspicious," he says about the way Louis's looking at the drawing mat. "You fill the pens with water. It won't make a mess everywhere."

Louis quirks a slight smirk at him. "Might be better than our present then."

Lizzie rips open her other present to reveal a box of magnetic building tiles. "Wow." She looks up at Nick and Louis with wide eyes. "They're so pretty."

"Let's play with them," Arlo says.

Lizzie tears open the box and spills them onto the floor where the two of them set to putting them together into a structure.

"I think we've been forgotten," Nick says.

Louis laughs softly. "I'll get them." He gets up and brings the last two presents over to the sofa. He hands Nick's to him. "You go first."

Nick's gift is in a small box that's wrapped only somewhat more neatly than the ones Lizzie and Arlo wrapped. He slits the tape and pulls the paper off.

"Oh, God, you're one of those," Louis groans. The corners of his eyes are crinkling too much for it to be a real complaint.

Just for that, Nick crumples the paper and tosses it onto the floor with the rest of it. He lifts the top off the box and pulls out a pair of VIP tickets for a Steve Aoki show in January. Nick's speechless for a moment. "Louis, this is sold out."

Louis shrugs, looking pleased. "I know a guy."

Nick raises his eyebrows.

Louis relents and grins. "I know Steve."

Nick touches the tickets. "Louis, this is amazing."

Louis rubs Nick's arm. "I wanted to get you something special."

"This is." Nick glances at Lizzie and Arlo; they're occupied, but probably not enough for him to get away with kissing Louis unnoticed. "Thank you."

Louis gives him one of those smiles that looks like he's trying to repress it just a bit.

"Open yours," Nick insists.

Louis's gift is in a larger box than Nick's. He tears the paper off, gleefully making a mess and smirking at Nick the whole time. He lifts the top off the box, looks down, and then smiles softly. He pulls out the hoodie and shakes it out to see the whole thing. It's from Nick's fall/winter line. He designed it before he met Louis again, but every time he sees it now, he thinks it's something he could have made just for Louis. It's gray, oversized with a few extra touches like a drawstring at the hem. There's a blurred version of Nick's logo across the chest. It's not the kind of thing Nick usually designs, but there had been a challenge from Henry involved.

"I know you like to be cosy," Nick says.

Louis looks like he's trying not to smile but can't help it. "And now I can be cosy with your name on my chest."

Nick doesn't even bother pretending that's not part of the reason for the gift.

Louis hugs him, the hoodie between them. "Thank you."

Nick keeps him close, checking to make sure Lizzie and Arlo are fully occupied before he murmurs into Louis's ear, "I have another gift idea."

Louis also glances at Lizzie and Arlo before he speaks. "What's that?"

Nick rubs Louis's thigh. "You have Snapchat, right?"

Louis looks at him for a moment before he gets it and his grin creases his face. He buries his giggles in Nick's shoulder. "Are you suggesting we exchange," his voice drops to a barely audible whisper, "dick pics for Christmas?"

Nick squeezes Louis's thigh. "We'll be apart. I don't want you to forget me."

Louis doesn't stop giggling. "I wouldn't, but alright, Grimshaw. You're on."

Nick grins at him. It's going to be a good Christmas.

**4\. Arlo's Birthday**

Louis's door is answered by a well fit popstar with Arlo hanging from one arm, which makes Louis's last text - _Do not under any circumstances tell Liam Harry is Lizzie's godfather._ \- make slightly more sense. At no point did Nick imagine that the Liam he meant was Liam Payne, and yet there he is.

"Lizzie! Grimmy!" Arlo shouts. "Liam, this is Lizzie and Grimmy!"

Liam smiles at them. "Hi. I'm Liam."

"Liam, Liam," Arlo says. "Can you pick up Lizzie too?"

"I don't know," Liam says. "Does Lizzie want to be picked up?"

"Yes!" Lizzie says, because of course she and Arlo always want to be doing whatever the other one is.

Nick crouches down. "Let's get your coat off first." He takes Lizzie's coat and hangs it up with his while Liam does, in fact, pick Lizzie up too and carry both her and Arlo further into the house.

Nick follows them far enough to see Liam taking them to where there are a handful of other kids gathered, and then detours to the kitchen. He wasn't expecting to know many people - the school friends party was at Arlo's mum's, and he saw plenty of Lizzie and Arlo's classmates' parents there - but he wasn't expecting not to know anyone other than Louis.

It's gratifying, then, when Louis lights up when he sees him and leaves off what he'd been doing - something with sandwiches - and comes over to hug him. They hug for just a moment too long to be casual, and Nick is acutely aware of the way their hands slide slowly away from each other.

To distract the collection of women in the kitchen Nick guesses are Louis's sisters from commenting on the fact, Nick brings up the celebrity in the room.

"Do you know Simon Cowell is in your house?" he asks Louis in a stage whisper.

There's mischief in Louis's eyes when he answers. "I've tried getting rid of him but he just won't leave."

"Excuse me," actual Simon Cowell says. "I was invited."

Simon looks affronted and Louis stern for a moment longer before they both dissolve into grins.

Louis introduces Nick to Simon, and then to the collection of women - four sisters and two friends - and Dan, whose name Nick recognizes from previous conversations as Louis's stepfather.

Nick's chatting with Lottie and Fizzy about the fashion industry when Liam Payne comes into the kitchen with Lizzie and Arlo hanging from his back and giggling. Liam has a very serious look on his face.

"I'm so sorry, mate," he says to Louis. "I've lost Arlo." He turns the apologetic look on Nick. "I can't find Lizzie either."

Lizzie and Arlo both giggle, and Arlo yells, "We're right here!"

Liam turns in a full circle. "I keep thinking I hear them, but every time I turn around they're not there."

Nick doesn't have as much practice maintaining a straight face as Louis seems to; he can't stop himself from smiling where Louis manages to look very serious if you don't look at the way the corners of his eyes are crinkling up.

"You'd better find them, Payno," Louis says. "Maybe Doris and Ernest can help you look."

Liam nods seriously. "I will. I won't let you down again."

Louis manages to keep the serious look on his face until Liam leaves the room. Then he grins and his laugh is more of a giggle than anything else. It's helplessly endearing, and Nick deeply regrets the fact that they're not at a stage to be public with their relationship yet because he desperately wants to kiss Louis right now.

Louis seems to catch something of that in his look, and sends him the briefest look of the same thing back at him. Then he says, "Make yourself useful, Nicholas," and puts a plate of sandwiches in Nick's hands with an excess of touching unnecessary to the activity.

Nick can feel himself turning a bit red, so it's just as well that he's been tasked to take things into another room.

The party is a luncheon, and once Louis has delegated the responsibility of getting everything onto the table to his sisters and Nick, he and Liam round up the kids and lead them on a winding, adventurous path through the house to wash their hands before they sit down to eat.

They're all at one large table, a lively chaos of kids demanding to sit next to favored people, adults arranging themselves around the kids, and an amused conspiracy of adult sisters that results in Nick not having to put in any effort at all to end up seated across from Louis.

It's wonderful, because it means he gets to look at and talk to Louis, and terrible, because it means he spends the whole meal watching Louis's mouth without being able to do anything about it. It's only a small comfort that he can see Louis watching him back.

The whole thing is loud and chaotic and full of people who love Louis and Arlo. Nick loves it. It's exactly the kind of party he likes to throw, with only a bit less wine.

He tells Louis that when he's helping taking plates to the kitchen after.

Louis's eyes crinkle up with a smile. He glances around to where nearly everyone else is busy either tidying up or making sure the kids' hands and faces get cleaned, and plucks at Nick's sleeve. "Come on."

Nick follows him, the two of them slipping out of the kitchen as unobtrusively as possible. Louis leads him up the stairs and into his bedroom, where he locks the door and pushes Nick up against it.

Nick puts his arms around Louis. "Well, this is a nice surprise."

"Hardly a surprise," Louis says. He pulls Nick down into kissing range. "Not when you've been eyefucking me all afternoon."

Nick's laugh bursts out of him. "Is that what I've been doing?"

"Might as well have been. Are you going to kiss me, or what?"

Nick does, and they stand there kissing for what is probably too long to be away from the party.

Nick is the one to push Louis back. "Darling, unless you're prepared to get off with me while your son's birthday party is going on out there."

"Right." Louis pushes at the fringe of his hair with the back of his hand. "Yeah, right." He ducks in for one more kiss and pulls back with a cheeky grin. "Couldn't have you here without getting a bit of a snog."

Nick has to turn around and unlock the door to keep himself from doing anything else that will keep them from the rest of Arlo's party.

He knows his cheeks are red, both of their lips are probably red, and Louis's probably smirking behind him, so he's not surprised by the looks they get when they rejoin the party. Liam even high-fives Louis, which should be embarrassing, but they both look pleased with themselves, so Nick decides to not worry about it. If things continue on as he wants them to, it's only the first of many opportunities to embarrass themselves in front of Louis's family.

Arlo runs into Louis, clinging to his leg and craning his head to look up at him. "Dad, can I open my presents now?"

Louis picks Arlo up and tips him upside down, making him shriek with delight. "Yeah, lad, let's do that." He swings Arlo a bit and carries him that way to the lounge where he flips him upright and lets him down to the ground. "Oi, oi, oi," he calls to the rest of the party. "Time for presents!"

His shout brings the rest of the party to them. Arlo's gaggle of grown-up aunts make sure he's in the center of one of the sofas where they can all stand opposite him to take pictures. Arlo squirms while everyone else arranges themselves about the lounge, until Louis finally hands him a present to open.

There are a lot of presents, toys and clothes and a few books.

Arlo looks most confused when Lizzie hands him the present she and Nick brought. "But you already gave me a present at my other party."

Lizzie shrugs, wholly unbothered. "Daddy says you always bring a present to a birthday party."

"I can't believe you're spoiling my son now," Louis murmurs to Nick, his eyes and the curve of his mouth betraying how much he doesn't mind.

"He is my second-favorite child," Nick murmurs back.

Arlo echoes Lizzie's shrug, the two of them always so willing to follow the other's lead, and tears open the paper and opens the box to reveal the hoodie with a dinosaur skeleton on it that's an exact match to one Lizzie has.

Arlo beams. "We can be like the twins now!"

Lizzie claps her hands excitedly. "Yes! We have to wear them to school on the same day."

"Oh my God," Nick says to the other adults. "Please tell me someone videoed that."

Lottie shakes her phone in his direction. "I've got it. I'll send it to you."

"And now you're going to be texting my sister," Louis says to Nick. This time he doesn't even manage a pretense of being displeased.

"You're never getting rid of me now, darling."

Louis smiles, and he goes on smiling through Arlo opening the rest of his presents. When Arlo gets to the end, Louis says, "There's one more for you, but I have to get it out of Uncle Liam's car."

Liam and Louis go outside. Louis pokes his head back into the house first. "Arlo, close your eyes."

Arlo does, and bounces impatiently while Liam and Louis push the door all the way open and bring the last present into the lounge.

Lizzie gasps when she sees it and bounces in her seat.

"Alright, lad," Louis says. "You can open your eyes now."

Arlo does, and then they get wide when he sees the bike in the center of the room. It's green and blue, just like Lizzie's, with stabilisers just like hers and a helmet that's red where hers is purple.

"Dad." Arlo walks over to it and puts his hand on it, and then turns to Louis. "My very own bike."

Louis smiles, and crouches down to Arlo's level. "Your very own bike," he confirms. "Do you like it?"

Arlo flings his arms around Louis. "I love it. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Louis closes his eyes and holds Arlo close, kisses the side of his head. There's so much love there that Nick thinks his heart might burst just from witnessing it.

Arlo lets go of Louis and turns around, beaming. "Lizzie! We can go on bike rides together!"

Lizzie nearly tackles him in a hug. "This is the best day!"

They dance around happily, with the younger twins and Simon's son joining them, and then Liam and Fizzy, until pretty soon Daisy is hooking up her phone to Louis's sound system and there's music and everyone is dancing.

Actual Simon Cowell looks around like the very concept is baffling to him. "This is a bit more of a party than I was expecting for a child's birthday."

Louis shakes his head at him. "Come on, Simon. Live a little."

Simon's return glance is as skeptical as any Nick has ever seen.

"Isn't he your boss?" Nick asks Louis. "Aren't you meant to be the least bit deferential?"

"Yes," Simon says. "Thank you."

Louis just laughs. "You love me just the way I am." He grins at Nick. "I bet you're well up for dancing."

Nick grins at him. "Always." Then he turns away from Louis and wades through the rest of the partygoers to pick up Lizzie and twirl her around.

He can hear Louis's laugh behind him. After he leaves kisses on both of Lizzie's cheeks and puts her down, he turns and meets Louis's eyes through the crowd. It's just as good as seeing him on a crowded dance floor in a club.

Louis laughs again, and wades into the dancing himself, twirling each of his sisters, high-fiving Ernest and Arlo, making Liam Payne dip him, even getting actual Simon Cowell to shuffle a few steps.

It's mad and utterly brilliant, and Nick wants to spend the rest of his life at birthday parties like this.

**Interlude: Public Appearance**

Nick looks out the window at the crowd and cameras lining the red carpet. "You ready for this?"

Louis says, "Absolutely," without the slightest hesitation. "Are you?"

"Yeah, course," Nick says, even though he is unaccountably nervous about it. He shouldn't be. They've been together for months now. They're in a proper relationship. They've told the kids about them, and the few friends and family members who didn't already know. They've been discreet without particularly hiding the fact that they're together when they've gone out on dates. But somehow walking a red carpet together and knowing that people will be taking their picture feels very different.

Nick reaches out and unnecessarily adjusts Louis's lapels for the sole purpose of getting his hands on him.

Louis smiles and takes Nick's hands in his. "It's going to be great." He presses a kiss to Nick's knuckles, and then shoves him toward the door.

Nick steps out and buttons his jacket, then holds out his hand for Louis. Louis lets Nick take his hand as he gets out of the car. He lets go to button his jacket, and then he takes Nick's hand again.

It's been a long time since Nick held hands in public with someone he was dating. It feels good, though, right, to walk down a red carpet with one hand in Louis's and the other waving at a crowd that, for the most part, doesn't care about them or know who they are.

They stop to get their picture taken a few times on the way down the red carpet, mostly by the photographers who are taking pictures of anyone who shows up and not the ones who are focused on the most lucrative shots.

They're almost at the end of the carpet when a familiar voice calls out, "Nick Grimshaw!"

"Daniel Thomas." Nick smiles and turns toward Daniel and his cameraman. "I didn't know you were covering this." He squeezes Louis's hand. "Daniel has a YouTube channel focused on London fashion."

"The most popular YouTube channel focused on London fashion," Daniel says. "Can we get an interview?"

They're here to be seen, so Nick and Louis stand where Daniel and his cameraman tell them to stand.

"I'm here with London fashion designer Nick Grimshaw. Nick, are you wearing your own clothes?"

"Course I am," Nick says. "It's not like I went into someone else's closet, 'scuse me, can I borrow an outfit?" He grins. "They're very much mine. My designs and all."

"It looks great," Daniel says. "Very now. And who's this with you?"

Nick looks at Louis, and he's probably ruining his cool fashion designer reputation with how big his smile is. "This is my partner, Louis Tomlinson. He's a very important music executive."

If Daniel's surprised, he doesn't show it. "Tell me about what you're wearing, Louis."

"Dunno, really," Louis says, with only the twitch of the corners of his mouth to show he's not being entirely serious. "Nick made it for me. Think it looks alright."

"Think it looks more than just alright," Nick says. He remembers they're being filmed with just enough time not to comment on what a masterpiece he's made out of Louis's already magnificent bum. If they're lucky, Daniel will film them walking away and his viewers can see it for themselves.

"I'm with Nick," Daniel says. "Enjoy the party."

They say goodbye to Daniel and make their way into the party. There are well-trained waiters greeting guests with trays of champagne; Nick takes one for each of them.

"That wasn't bad," Nick says.

Louis laughs and leans against him. "It was fine." He tugs on Nick's hand. "Let's find someone interesting to talk to."

Nick can see three popstars he knows Louis knows and actual Simon Cowell in the crowd. He lets Louis pull him along to where he wants to go, but the first person they actually find is Harry.

"Grimmy!" Harry's in a floral patterned suit with a gold shirt open to show half his chest.

Nick lets go of Louis's hand to return Harry's hug. "Hiya."

"And Louis!" Harry lets go of Nick to give Louis a hug just as tight as the one he gave Nick but that goes on a bit longer.

"Hi, Harold." Louis tugs at Harry's hair. "I like the look. Very glam."

Harry beams at him. "Thanks, love. You look amazing."

God, Nick is ridiculous. He knows for sure that Louis's coming home with him. A large part of the reason they're here is so that people can see them together. And yet he's still terribly jealous watching Louis and Harry flirt.

One of the photographers, probably following Harry around, says, "Guys, a photo?"

Harry steps to the other side of Louis, who goes up on his toes to get his arm around Harry's shoulder. His other arm slides around Nick's waist. Anyone paying close attention will have to know he's with Nick and not with Harry.

Liam Payne joins them as the photographer leaves, pulling Louis away from Nick for a solid hug. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"I didn't know you were going to be here," Louis says. "Have you met Harry?"

Liam smiles at Harry. "We haven't met yet. Nice to meet you, mate. How do you know Nick and Louis?"

Harry smiles back, and honestly, is he just incapable of not flirting? "Nick and I have been friends for years. I'm his daughter's godfather."

"Harold," Louis scolds. "Did you have to tell him that?"

Harry and Liam turn nearly matching wounded looks on him.

"What did I do?" Harry asks.

"Louis wouldn't let me be Arlo's godfather because I was a popstar," Liam says.

"So that's why you didn't want me to tell him that Harry is Lizzie's godfather," Nick says, because now that text Louis sent him before Arlo's birthday party but never explained makes sense.

"Look, mate," Louis says, putting a hand on Liam's shoulder, "you're still his Uncle Liam and he loves you."

"Arlo's five," Nick says. "Have you been arguing about this the whole time since you found out you were having him?"

Louis and Liam turn uncomprehending looks on him.

"Of course we have," Liam says.

"Liam won't let it go," Louis says, as if this is a completely reasonable thing for them to have been arguing about for over half a decade.

Nick can't do anything but laugh and tug Louis over to him with an arm around his waist.

Louis smiles up at him, pleased and just a little smug.

Nick hopes it's one of the candid moments one of the photographers wandering around captures.

Of course, there are plenty of other candid moments that will do just as well over the course of the evening. They hold hands, kiss each other's cheeks, and generally engage in a variety of public displays of affection that will leave no doubt in any observer's mind that they're together.

For something that had Nick tied in knots for weeks, it's all rather easy, even fun. He likes being able to touch Louis whenever he wants, there are plenty of other people there he knows, and there's an open bar.

They've both had quite a few by the time they leave, holding hands all the way to the car while a few lingering photographers take photos of anyone leaving in hopes of getting something they can sell.

They usually end up at Nick's after a night out, but when the driver asks where they want to be dropped off, Nick says, "Yours is closer," and puts his hand on Louis's thigh.

Louis gives the driver his address and shoots Nick a look from under his eyelashes that almost makes Nick forget why blowjobs in the back of a hired car are a bad idea.

Louis's place isn't far, and it's late enough that there isn't much traffic to contend with. It's still torture to watch the flush on Louis's face that goes along with Nick's hand sometimes moving up his thigh, sometimes squeezing. 

They tumble into the house, both of them already reaching for each other before Louis even gets the door unlocked. Louis kicks the door shut, and Nick reaches back with one of his longer arms to turn the lock.

They race each other up the stairs. Louis is faster, but Nick can take them two at a time, and he doesn't mind being behind Louis so he can watch his bum in the trousers Nick designed for him.

Nick catches up to him just outside the door of his bedroom. He grabs Louis around the waist and turns him around. "Got you, darling." He takes Louis's mouth in a kiss that's meant to be all-consuming, but somehow Louis stumbles them back and gets his door open while they're snogging.

Nick flips on the lights when they part for breath, and then stops, stock still while he takes in Louis's bedroom. It looks like it's been hit by a tornado, clothes on every surface.

Louis blinks at him, looks around the room, and comes over as embarrassed as Louis ever does. He pushes at his fringe, a nervous habit. "I didn't think we'd come here. I usually tidy before you come over."

Nick finds his voice. "Oh my God. Is this what I have to look forward to when we move in together?"

Louis breaks into one of those smiles where he looks like he's trying not to smile. "Are we moving in together then?"

Nick maybe didn't mean to say that, but it's out there now, and Louis doesn't seem opposed. He slides his hands around Louis's waist. "I think that's where we're going."

Louis kisses him long and luxurious. "Me too."

It's like Nick's whole body fills up with joy. He laughs with it, and cups Louis's face in his hands while he kisses him through their smiles.

Louis kisses him back, a whole series of kisses while they're laughing with sheer joy. Then he pulls away and drops to his knees. "I really want to suck you."

Nick puts his hands in Louis's hair. "Yeah, do that."

Louis undoes Nick's trousers and gets his cock out. He looks up at Nick, and he has to know what he looks like, eyes looking up from under his eyelashes and his fringe, mouth red from Nick's kisses.

"Go on then," Nick says. He pulls Louis toward him, gentle but insistent.

Louis smirks at him, and then puts his mouth on his cock. It's good, because it's always good, because Louis knows what to do with his mouth in general, and with his mouth on Nick's cock in particular. It's even better tonight, when they've been photographed and interviewed together, when Louis is wearing Nick's designs.

"God, you look good," Nick groans. He pushes Louis's fringe off his face so he can see him better. "Look so good at my feet in my clothes."

Louis's eyes crinkle up in a smile and he pulls off of Nick's cock. "Possessive boyfriend you are," he says cheerfully.

Nick strokes Louis's cheek. "I am, you know," he admits. "I want to keep you."

Louis stands up, all the way up onto his toes to loop his arms around Nick's neck and kiss him with gratifying thoroughness. "I want that too," he says, right up close to Nick, smile almost pressed to Nick's lips.

Nick closes that tiny space between them and kisses Louis. It goes on for a bit, long enough that Nick thinks maybe they're going to get off just like this.

Louis pulls away and says, with a smirk, "I also really want to suck your cock."

Nick lets him go so he can slide down to his knees again and do just that. It's just as skillful this time, and Louis's hands on Nick's thighs encourage him to thrust gently into his mouth. Nick has to fight to keep his eyes open, pleasure warring with how much he wants to watch. He keeps them open until he's coming and his body takes over, closing them while Louis swallows around him.

"Get on the bed," Nick says after. "I can't stand up after that."

Louis goes, smirking like the cat that got the cream, and sits up against the headboard. He opens his own trousers and gets his cock out while Nick lies down between his legs.

Nick's knees are still weak, but it doesn't matter when he's lying down, propped up on his elbows so he's looking down at Louis's cock. He licks it, root to tip, and revels in Louis's groan before he lowers his mouth down its length.

Louis's not the only one in this bedroom who can give an excellent blowjob. Nick pulls out all his best tricks, because this seems like a night for it, and slides his hands under Louis to squeeze his bum both for his own pleasure and because he knows Louis likes it.

He looks up toward Louis's face, the stretch of Louis's body in clothes Nick designed, watching him while Louis falls apart, his noises going from words to just Nick's name to wordless moans just before he comes.

Nick sucks his softening cock until Louis pushes him off with a pained moan. Then he moves up and Louis moves down so they're lying side by side on the bed.

"Good night," Nick comments.

Louis rolls to face him, eyes bright. "Who says it's over?"

"Oh my God," Nick says, laughing as Louis kisses him. "I'm too old to go again." He isn't, really, and they spend some time proving it.

**5\. Family Sleepover**

"Daddy, they're here!"

Nick says, "I heard the buzzer just the same as you did, princess," but he's moving for the door just as eagerly as Lizzie is.

He checks to make sure it really is who they're expecting, and then he flings the door open wide. "Tomlinsons!"

Louis and Arlo beam at Nick and Lizzie. "Grimshaws," Louis returns, laughing.

Nick lets them in and closes the door behind them while Lizzie and Arlo hug tightly.

Lizzie takes Arlo's hand. "Come on. They're going to be boring and kiss. Harry gave me more color tiles. We can build a really big house."

Louis chuckles and settles his arms around Nick. "Are we going to be boring and kiss?"

Nick wraps his arms around Louis in turn. "I prefer to think of it as being exciting and kissing."

Louis's smiling at him when Nick kisses him. Nick takes advantage of the moment of privacy Lizzie and Arlo have given them and puts his hands on Louis's bum, hitching him up a little to get better access to his mouth. And to get his hands on Louis's bum, which is always something he wants to do.

They spend a few minutes kissing before Louis ends it and puts his forehead down on Nick's shoulder. "Better stop now."

Nick moves his hands up to Louis's back, a marginally safer place to touch when there are children playing nearby. "Glad you're here."

Louis pulls back and smiles at him, one of those brilliantly happy ones. "Me too, love." He steps back and fixes his fringe.

"Come through," Nick says. "There's beer for you and wine for me."

"You bought cheap beer," Louis says when Nick hands him one. "Must be true love."

"Like the wine at yours," Nick says.

Louis's lips press together in a mischievous, suppressed smile. "No idea what you're talking about, mate."

Nick leans over and kisses him, then takes his glass of wine and leads Louis and his beer to the lounge where Lizzie and Arlo are deeply engaged in building a complicated structure that, Nick guesses from the toys scattered around them, is meant to house dinosaurs and Spider-Man.

Louis cuddles in close to Nick on the sofa, putting his beer down so he can wrap both arms around Nick. Nick sets down his wine so he can do the same. He presses a kiss to the top of Louis's head.

"Y'alright?"

Louis sighs and rubs his cheek against Nick's chest. "Long week."

Nick runs his hand through Louis's hair. "Want to talk about it?"

Louis sighs again. "I found a guy who isn't, like, an obvious hit, but he's a real artist with a vision. Simon wouldn't sign him. I argued with him, but he wouldn't change his mind."

"I'm sorry, love." Nick kisses the top of Louis's head. He knows how Louis feels about the artists he finds.

They sit quietly for a few minutes, watching Lizzie and Arlo pass tiles back and forth as they build their structure.

"You ever want to start your own label?" Nick asks. "One where you get the final say?"

"Like you?" Louis says. "Nah, that's not for me. Syco has a good system, a good network. There's a lot of support. Couldn't do that much for that many people on me own." He tips his head up to look at Nick, whose face probably isn't hiding how much he likes listening to Louis. "You like hearing about that?"

"Talk business to me, baby," Nick says.

Louis laughs and sits up to grab his beer. "And how was your week, dear?"

Nick smacks a kiss onto Louis's cheek before launching into the story of his attempts to source the perfect fabric for a pair of trousers for his next line.

Louis watches him with a smile and a look that Nick would unhesitatingly call the heart eyes emoji if it weren't directed at him. "Are you really enjoying this story that much?"

"Talk fashion to me, baby," Louis says.

Nick laughs, and Louis breaks and joins him in it a few seconds later, which makes Nick laugh harder, and then they're laughing so much over nothing that they draw Lizzie and Arlo's attention.

"What's so funny?" Lizzie asks them suspiciously.

"Boring grown-up things," Louis says. "How's your building coming along, darling?"

Lizzie eyes them for a moment longer - Nick's daughter has never been one to be easily put off when she thinks she's being left out of anything fun - then says, "It's done. Can we make pizza now?"

"I've never made pizza before," Arlo says.

Louis pushes his fringe aside. "We're not much for cooking at home."

Nick stands and takes Louis's hand to pull him up too. "Never too late, or too early," he nods at Arlo, "to learn."

Nick bought an excess of pre-made dough - he may cook more than Louis, but he is fully aware of when it's worth it to take shortcuts - so after everyone washes their hands, he lets Arlo and Lizzie each have their own small ball of dough to stretch. It means that when one of them inevitably drops theirs on the floor, he can start over and still have enough pizza for their tea.

Arlo and Lizzie help put toppings on all of the pizzas, and Nick gives them carrot sticks to snack on while they're waiting for the pizza to bake.

"Can we watch it?" Lizzie asks. To Arlo she says, "You can see the cheese melt!"

Nick turns on the oven light, and Lizzie and Arlo stand in front of the oven to watch the pizza bake.

Louis makes a bit of a face when Nick feeds him a carrot stick, but gives in and bites down on it. "Tryin' to make me eat healthy," he mutters.

Nick kisses his cheek. "Want you around for a long time."

Louis sighs. "You had to go and make it nice." He turns his head and they exchange a brief kiss that's interrupted by Arlo.

"Dad! Look, the cheese is changing."

Louis crouches down in front of the oven with Arlo and Lizzie. "It's a bit different to how it does it on cheese toasties, isn't it?"

Arlo leans against him. "Yeah. Can we make pizza at home?"

Louis kisses the top of his head. "Sure thing, lad." He stands up and mock glares at Nick. "This is all your fault."

Nick can't find it in himself to feel even the slightest bit bad about that. He feeds Louis another carrot stick.

Lizzie and Arlo exclaim over every visible change in the pizzas as they bake, which is just a good a guide as the timer as to when they're ready to come out of the oven. Nick shoos Lizzie and Arlo away, and Louis makes sure they stay where they won't get burned while Nick takes the pizzas out of the oven.

Nick encourages everyone to eat a few more carrot sticks while the pizza cools enough that Lizzie and Arlo won't burn themselves on it, which is only a moderately successful venture. Making fancy drinks - Shirley Temples, complete with a cherry each - for Lizzie and Arlo is a better way to buy a few minutes. Nick sends them to the table with their drinks while he slices the pizza and makes up plates.

Nick perhaps shouldn't have fed everyone so many carrots, because it means Lizzie and Arlo aren't so hungry that they can't play with their food. Lizzie shows Arlo how well the cheese stretches, and they make a game out of stretching it from their slices to their mouths as long as they can. Louis gets involved, of course, and then Nick has to join in, and it makes a complete mess out of all of them.

Lizzie and Arlo finish eating first and submit to being cleaned up before Nick lets them run off to play. Nick and Louis clean themselves up and sit at the table with drinks and pizza they eat with only the usual amount of mess.

Louis helps carry things into the kitchen when they're finished, but makes no move to help with the washing up.

"I'm a guest," he says with insincerely wide eyes. "You can't make guests help with the washing up."

Nick says, "I make guests help with the washing up all the time," without insisting Louis help.

Louis watches him for a moment before he steps up to Nick and wraps both arms around him. He goes up on his toes and presses a kiss to Nick's jaw, and then another one.

"You know I've got washing up to do."

Louis doesn't move, other than to turn his attention to Nick's neck. "Got other things you could do."

Nick smiles without letting Louis take his attention away from the washing up. "That your best line, love?"

"Nah," Louis says, "but wouldn't want the kids to hear my best line."

Nick moves quickly enough to take Louis by surprise. He turns them around, pushing Louis up against the sink and caging him in between his arms. He bends and kisses Louis, going straight in.

Louis melts against him, bringing his arms up to wrap around Nick's neck before kissing back with just as much enthusiasm and force as Nick is using to kiss him. Nick keeps him pressed to the edge of the sink while they snog for long minutes.

"God," Louis groans, "I want."

"I know." Nick mouths down the side of his neck, pushing down the edge of his shirt to bite at his collarbone. "After they're asleep."

Louis holds him in place for a bit longer with a hand at the back of his head.

Nick steps back when Louis lets go and gently guides Louis out of the way so he can finish the washing up. Louis alternates watching him with a look that means he's thinking about other activities and his usual variety of taking the piss.

Lizzie and Arlo come into the kitchen at a dead run that ends when they skid to a stop just before running into the cabinets. "Daddy," Lizzie asks breathlessly, "can we watch a movie in your bed now? Please?"

Nick bends down to kiss the top of her head. "Yep. Put on your pajamas and brush your teeth and then you can choose a movie."

He and Louis take turns supervising the toothbrushing, largely because Nick knows he won't be able to keep his hands off of Louis if he has to watch Louis changing from his already comfortable clothes into a pair of joggers and what turns out to be a long-sleeved t-shirt he's nicked from Nick's closet. His unrepentant smirk says he knows exactly what he's doing to Nick.

The four of them pile into Nick's bed, Lizzie and Arlo in the middle with Nick and Louis on either side of them.

Lizzie takes charge of the remote, and she and Arlo scroll through the movies she's allowed to watch until they decide on Finding Nemo. It's one of Lizzie's favorites, so Nick knows it nearly well enough to say all the lines along with it. He spends much of the movie watching Lizzie, Arlo, and Louis instead of the action on the telly.

Louis catches him at it more than once, and they exchange soft smiles that fill Nick up with almost as much joy as the feeling of Lizzie cuddled up between him and Arlo.

Lizzie and Arlo are half asleep by the time the movie is over, but Lizzie's awake enough to ask, "Daddy, c'n we watch 'nother one?"

Nick looks to Louis for his agreement before he says, "Sure thing, princess," and puts on Lilo and Stitch.

Lizzie and Arlo fall all the way asleep within the first twenty minutes. Nick turns off the telly and slips out of bed, gesturing Louis along with him.

"That's a fucking weird movie," Louis says when they're outside the bedroom with the door between them and the kids closed.

"Gets less weird as it goes on." Nick pulls Louis to him and licks slowly into his mouth.

Louis leans into him, and then pulls away to let out a massive yawn. "Oh, God, sorry." He yawns again.

Nick wraps both arms around him and pulls him in against his chest. "Maybe not tonight then."

"Sorry," Louis mumbles into his chest.

"Don't be sorry, love. Got plenty of time for that. Only so long we'll get to sleep with a pair of five-year-olds taking up most of the bed."

Louis chuckles and tips his head up to kiss Nick lightly. "Love you."

Nick is definitely doing his skincare regimen before he gets back in bed because the smile he's giving Louis is definitely going to deepen his laugh lines. "You too."

**+1. Coming Home**

"Are you ready?" Louis asks Lizzie and Arlo as the four of them go through the front gate.

"Yes!" Arlo yells.

"Come _on_." Lizzie grabs Arlo's hand, and they race up the walk to the door. "Daddy, hurry up!"

Nick takes Louis's hand and they finish the walk to the house at a more reasonable speed, despite the impatient children waiting on the doorstep.

"Grimmy, open the door!" Arlo says. He and Lizzie are bouncing on their feet.

"Yeah, Grimmy," Louis says, nudging Nick with his elbow. "Open the door."

Nick groans theatrically. "Is this what it's going to be like from now on? All three of you demanding things from me all the time?" He bends to kiss the top of Lizzie and Arlo's heads on his way to unlock the door.

"Just open the door, Nicholas," Louis says.

Nick drops a kiss on the top of his head too before he ceremoniously unlocks and opens the door. "Welcome home."

Lizzie and Arlo rush through the door, and then stop to look around with wide eyes. Nick and Louis, along with a set of paid movers and a variety of friends and popstars, got most of the house set up while Lizzie and Arlo had a weekend-long sleepover at Arlo's mum's house.

Louis lets go of Nick's hand and crouches down in front of Lizzie and Arlo. "It's a bit overwhelming, innit?"

"Uh-huh," Arlo says. "Everything's different."

"Last time you were here it was empty," Louis says, "so it looks really different to that." He stands and holds out his hands to Lizzie and Arlo. "But lots of things are the same. Come and see."

Nick follows them into the lounge. They bought the coffee table for the new house, but the sofa is the one from Nick and Lizzie's house and the gaming console shelving is from Louis and Arlo's. There are pieces of art from Nick's, superhero figures from Louis's, and framed photos from both of their places on the bookshelves from Nick's.

Once Louis starts pointing it out, Lizzie and Arlo make a game of it, going from room to room pointing out the things they recognize.

Nick leans against Louis in the kitchen where Lizzie and Arlo are exclaiming over what's already hung up on the front of the refrigerator. "You're really good at this."

"Oldest of seven," Louis reminds him. He wraps his arm around Nick's waist and leans up to kiss his temple. "You're a great dad. I wouldn't let Arlo move into a house with you if you weren't."

Nick turns his head and kisses Louis for a long, gentle moment, until Lizzie tugs at his jeans.

"Can we see our room now?"

They'd brought Lizzie and Arlo to see the house when they were deciding to buy it. When Nick pointed out which bedroom would be his and Louis's and told them that they could each choose one of the other three, they'd turned matching looks of betrayal on him.

"Daddy, no," Lizzie said, on the verge of tears. "We have to share. That's the _best part_ of moving."

Arlo had added his appeal aimed at Louis. "Dad, we don't want our own rooms."

Both Nick and Louis had several conversations, alone and together, with Lizzie and Arlo to make sure that was what they really wanted, and then they'd given in and now Lizzie and Arlo have a separate bedroom and a playroom until they decide they'd rather have their own rooms.

Nick takes his turn to crouch down and talk to her and Arlo. "Yeah, course you can. Your room is a little bit empty looking right now. We'll help you put everything away, but we wanted you to choose which things to keep in your bedroom and which things to keep in the playroom. Okay?"

Lizzie and Arlo meet this information with solemn nods. "Okay." Then they race away from Nick and Louis, up the stairs.

Nick picks up their overnight bags from the hall on the way after them. The furniture is set up in both rooms, and they made - or, to be more accurate, Harry made - both beds while they were setting up the house. They put up a few photos and art pieces, and made sure that Lizzie and Arlo's current favorite books were on the shelf in their bedroom. Aimee and Ian unpacked all of Lizzie and Arlo's clothes, and Liam, who turned out to be rather handy, set up new shelves in the playroom.

Many of Arlo and Lizzie's things are still in their boxes, with Nick and Louis's best guess as to which room the things will end up in as a guide to where the boxes are.

"If you don't like it, we can move things," Nick says, even though the thought of moving furniture again makes him want to take to his bed like a delicate Victorian maiden.

Lizzie opens and peers into both of the wardrobes while Arlo does a slow circle in the middle of the room taking it all in.

Arlo ventures across the hall to the playroom first, and Nick and Louis are in the hallway when he yells, "Lizzie, come see!"

Lizzie dashes across the hall and stops with a gasp.

Nick and Louis follow her in. Both Lizzie and Arlo are staring at the trio of canvases taking up nearly one entire wall. There's one dinosaur spray painted onto the center of each of them, with a background stretching across the canvases that makes them all one image.

"Wow." Lizzie turns her head just enough to see Nick and Louis. "Wow, daddy." She turns back to look at the painting again.

"A friend of mine made it as a housewarming present for you and Arlo," Louis tells her, like it's no big deal that they have a wall-sized Zayn Malik original hanging in their children's playroom.

"Tommo, I love it." Lizzie turns around and hugs Louis tightly around the waist. She tips her head up to look at him. "This is the best."

Louis smiles down at her and cups the back of her head. "I told him you and Arlo love dinosaurs." He ruffles her hair and includes Arlo in his smile. "Should we figure out where the rest of your dinosaurs are going to live?"

That sets off an afternoon of unpacking and finding new homes for the belongings of two children. Nearly everything gets unpacked and tidied away, there are a few meltdowns, and all four of them are exhausted by the time Nick decides it's time to stop for the day.

"How would you like pizza for our tea?" he asks Lizzie and Arlo while Louis is folding up the most recently unpacked box.

"Can we have it in our pajamas?" Lizzie asks.

"Course you can," Nick says, because at this point he'll agree to pretty much anything that makes them happy and forestalls any more tears on anyone's part.

Lizzie and Arlo cross the hall to put on their pajamas.

Nick slumps across the room to drape his arms over Louis's shoulders and lean as much of his weight as Louis can take against him. "Oh God, I'm so tired."

Louis nods. "We're never moving house again."

Nick smiles despite his exhaustion. "Okay."

Louis kisses him for a soft, slow minute, which is one of the best moments of Nick's day, then pushes him back. "Are you ordering, or am I?"

"You," Nick says. "Please. I'm well desperate for a shower."

Louis presses another kiss to his lips. "Yeah, go."

Nick can hear him asking Lizzie and Arlo what they want on their pizza as he heads for their room and its ensuite with a frankly amazing shower. There's a bath as well, but Nick doesn't have the patience for that at the best of times, and certainly not when he just wants to be clean.

He has a tiny bit of a cry in the shower, letting the emotions of the day and his exhaustion get the best of him. He puts on pajamas after, and goes in search of the rest of his family.

He finds them downstairs in the lounge, Lizzie and Arlo in a nest of pillows and blankets on the floor with Frozen on the telly and Louis sprawled out on the sofa with a beer.

Louis hauls himself up from the sofa and hands over his phone. "Pizza tracker," he explains, and then he brushes a kiss across Nick's mouth and goes up the stairs.

Nick pours himself a glass of wine in the kitchen before taking Louis's place on the sofa. He's seen the film enough times to have the whole thing memorized, but he's too tired to do much more than watch it and scroll through Instagram on his phone.

He even puts his phone down when Louis comes downstairs in trackies and a hoodie and lies down on top of him. Nick wraps his arms around Louis, and it's a nice cuddle. He could probably sleep like this.

The pizza tracker lets them know their driver has arrived just before the doorbell goes.

"One of us has to get up," Louis mumbles against Nick's shoulder.

"You're on top," Nick points out.

Louis flashes him a smirk.

Nick lets out a tired laugh and pokes him in the side. "You go."

"The things I do for you." Louis gets up with an unnecessary application of his elbows and knees.

Nick says, "Oof," and waits a minute before struggling to sit up. He really could have fallen asleep just there, but now that he can smell the pizza, he realizes how hungry he is. He shakes himself out of his stupor and goes to the kitchen for plates, serviettes, and water for Lizzie and Arlo.

He comes back to find Louis, Lizzie, and Arlo pulling slices out of the boxes. Nick slides plates under all of them, hands out serviettes and drinks, and collapses onto the sofa next to Louis to eat as much pizza as he can handle.

Louis is the one to pause the movie and insist Lizzie and Arlo wash their hands and brush their teeth before they finish it.

"Go on," Nick says when Lizzie tries to protest. "It'll still be right here when you get back, and then you don't have to do it later."

She pouts at him, but does as she's told.

Lizzie and Arlo snuggle down in their nest on the floor to watch the rest of the film. Louis brings two cups of tea from the kitchen and sits next to Nick on the sofa. He cuddles close, shoulder tucked under Nick's arm, one leg thrown over Nick's, head resting on Nick's chest.

Nick kisses the top of his head. "Proper nice this is."

He can just see the curve of Louis's smile. "And no one has to leave at the end of the night."

Nick ducks just enough to kiss Louis's cheek. "I'm never leaving again."

Louis tips his head up and raises his eyebrows. "Bit hard to run your company from here."

"Isn't that why we have an office?"

Louis pokes him in the stomach. "We have an office because neither of us can leave work at work. You'll have to leave the house sometimes."

Nick makes a face at him, and then chuckles. "Can't believe you're the one saying that. I know how much you like staying in."

Louis tilts his head up to meet Nick's eyes. "You hate staying in all the time." He puts his head down and pats Nick's stomach. "Can't have you unhappy all the time."

Nick squeezes Louis and presses his lips to the top of his head. "I'm really happy right now." He ruins it by yawning.

Louis chuckles and sits up, putting his cup down. "Think they're asleep?" he nods at Lizzie and Arlo.

Nick recognizes the slow, even movements of Lizzie's breath. "Yeah. We gonna leave them to sleep here?"

Louis shakes his head. "No." He stands up and holds a hand out to Nick. "One more thing to move, and then we can go to bed."

Nick takes his hand and groans theatrically but quietly. Louis pulls him up, then lets him go and turns off the telly.

They each pick up their respective children, and Nick uses an elbow to turn off the lights in the lounge before they go upstairs. They settle Lizzie and Arlo into their beds, leave the door half-open, and go to their room. Nick should have followed his own advice to Lizzie and done his evening routine earlier. He didn't, and now he pays for it by stumbling through it when all he wants to do is lie down with Louis in their bed in their new house and go to sleep.

Louis's already in bed when Nick joins him. Nick spoons up against his back and feels warm and happy all over when Louis cuddles into him.

Nick kisses the edge of Louis's cheek. "Love you."

"Love you too." Louis puts his hand over Nick's. "Love this, too. Really happy we moved in together."

Nick nudges at Louis until he turns his head enough for Nick to give him a real kiss. "Me too." He settles them back down so they can sleep. "Happiest I've ever been."


End file.
